


Growing Up

by annathecrow



Series: Femslash drabbles and ficlets [2]
Category: Young Avengers
Genre: Childhood Friends, Community: femslash100, Female Friendship, Ficlet, Gen, Growing Up, drabbletag6
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-07-06
Updated: 2015-07-06
Packaged: 2018-04-07 23:42:11
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 250
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4282449
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/annathecrow/pseuds/annathecrow
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"The first time she sees America, Katie is five and absolutely underwhelmed by the scruffy tomboy before her."<br/>--<br/>A "what if" ficlet.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Growing Up

**Author's Note:**

> Written for femslash100 drabbletag6 prompt ["Marvel: America/Kate - Growing Up"](http://femslash100.livejournal.com/1434218.html?thread=5073258#t5073258).

The first time she sees America, Katie is five and absolutely underwhelmed by the scruffy tomboy before her.

“ _This_ is the princess?” she asks incredulously.

The other girl sticks her tongue out at her. The three mothers laugh indulgently.

The second time, she’s eight and America suddenly sits in her school cafeteria, staring at a sandwich.

“Hi,” Katie says as she sits down opposite her. The other girl gives her a sour look which turns into a toothy smile. “Hello, princess.”

“It’s Kate Bishop.” Katie corrects her.

“Uh-huh,” America says, unimpressed.

The third, fourth, thousandth time blur together - the time they got detention for America’s hair; that thing with the cello strings, when they skipped school and wandered through New York, trying strange food and laughing all day.

The last time Katie sees her best friend, she’s fourteen. They say goodbye after school, and the next day, she’s gone. Nobody cares, because people from alternate realities or something. Later that year, her mom’s diagnosed with cancer, and it just keeps getting shittier.

\---

The first time Kate Bishop sees America Chavez, she’s standing on Kate’s doorstep, interrupting Kate’s brooding over future, now that Young Avengers are no more.

“Where have you been?” Kate asks flatly, crossing her arms against the urge to hug her.

America grimaces but stands straight, the image of determination in scuffed boots and star-spangled denim. She looks more like herself than Kate ever saw her.

She offers Kate a hand. “I can show you.”

“What?”

“The universe.”

**Author's Note:**

> This was a pain to force under the 250 word limit, but it was a great exercise, and I had fun with it.


End file.
